Shepherd's pie with yuca mash

This is comfort food that actually belongs in an autoimmune recovery plan. Ground beef, carrots, celery, onion, and beef broth on the bottom. Smooth yuca mash on top. Baked until it holds together. It is warm and filling and genuinely satisfying - the kind of meal that makes the protocol feel sustainable.

Grass-fed ground beef is one of the more reliable dietary sources of zinc, a mineral involved in immune cell regulation and the repair of the gut lining. The collagen in homemade beef broth contributes glycine, which is linked to the same repair process. These are not small things when the goal is moving an autoimmune condition toward remission.

Yuca - also called cassava - is an AIP-approved starch and it makes a remarkable mash. It is starchier and denser than potato, which means it holds its shape better as a topping. Coconut milk takes the place of flax or almond milk here; both are excluded on AIP elimination. The result is a mash that is rich without being heavy.

Peas, Worcestershire, and black pepper have all been omitted. Legumes and most commercial Worcestershire formulations are excluded on AIP elimination, and peppercorn is a seed-spice. Nothing is missing.

Ingredients

For the filling:

• 1 tbsp avocado oil or olive oil
• 1 lb grass-fed ground beef
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 2 cups beef broth (homemade or clean-label AIP-compatible)
• 1 tbsp arrowroot flour dissolved in 1 tbsp cold water
• Himalayan salt to taste

For the yuca mash:

• 3 cups yuca, peeled and coarsely chopped, boiled to fork-tender
• 1/2 cup coconut milk (replaces flax or almond milk - AIP swap)
• Garlic salt to taste (check label for AIP compliance)

AIP swaps made: peas omitted (legume); Worcestershire omitted (non-AIP condiment); black pepper omitted (seed-spice); flax or almond milk replaced with coconut milk.

Method

Boil the yuca. Peel and chop the yuca into large pieces. Place in a pot, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Cook until completely fork-tender, 20 to 30 minutes depending on the size of your pieces. Drain well.

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Make the filling. Heat the oil in a large oven-safe skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add the ground beef, breaking it up with a spoon, and cook until no pink remains, 7 to 8 minutes.

Add the carrots and celery. Stir to combine. Pour in the beef broth. Season with salt. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until the vegetables begin to soften. Stir in the arrowroot slurry and cook for 2 more minutes until the filling thickens. Taste and adjust salt.

Make the mash. Drain the cooked yuca and transfer to a bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the coconut milk and garlic salt. Mash or beat until smooth. Yuca can be stringy - remove any fibrous strands as you mash. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Assemble and bake. If your skillet is oven-safe, spread the yuca mash directly over the filling. If not, transfer the filling to a baking dish first. Spread the mash to the edges in an even layer.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the top begins to set and the edges are bubbling. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

*Adapted from predominantlypaleo.com*

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*Provenance: method rebuilt in ARM's own words from source file aip-source-archives/predominantly-paleo/paleo-shepherds-pie.md. Ingredient list used as factual reference. No third-party text reproduced.*